SO.....
being prepared has been on my mind a ton lately.
Whether you follow politics or prophecies, or just simply enjoy feeling like you have abundance of goods on hand, food storage makes sense to everyone.
But if you're like me, we put it off.
I grab a few extra things here and there and hope I get to it before it spoils.
It is kind of a jumbled mess
Water damage from the pipe burst isn't helping things
A friend of mine has been a long time advocate of preparedness and emergency readiness.
She has started an program to help everyone get more prepared.( You can find out more details by following this link to 3 Steps . org)
I LOVE her idea for dinners. You plan a simple meal that your family will eat.
The next time you prepare it, buy enough for 5 more meals.
(for these photos I only have 3 meals- more on that later)
All of the ingredients are labeled and stored inside the bucket, which you also label.
Then you can stack the buckets, keeping them together, using very little space.
.
Because I had these buckets already (and they were 2 for a buck!) I decided I would start where I am and just get some of the stuff I had grouped together. They only hold 3 or 4 smaller meals.
The buckets will survive a pipe burst, plus they will be very easy to grab and throw into a car,
or even to carry to a neighbors or family.
Ideally, you will use 5 or 6 gallon buckets so you can store 5 full dinners with fruit or other side items . You can also get better lids (displayed on the 3 Steps websites)
to completely seal out any other damage.
My plan is to organize what I have, then slowly start with new buckets and anything new I buy, purchasing higher quality.
The goal is to have 18 buckets with 5 meals in each, (recipes also on the website), filling a 3 month dinner supply. Once you are done you will make ONE MEAL a week out of the bucket, and buy the ingredients to replace it, so you will rotate the entire set in about 2 years.
NOW- best case scenario is you will use these as needed- maybe a night where you have 'nothing' to make, or an evening where you are out and the kids can pull out a simple meal.
I also envision these being very easy to take to a disaster sight, maybe another neighborhood even, and how easy it would be to quickly distribute meals to needy or displaced families.
Worst case scenario is disaster or chaos hits your own home.....
you will supplement with other goods (like the 20 year shelf life basics) and know you have a dinner to look forward to every night.
I am NO expert, and I get overwhelmed easily, so I am happy to feel like I can tackle this a bit at a time. I have supplies for more dinners,
and will be adding them as I get the proper sized buckets.
I feel blessed to live in a 'time of plenty' and feel that storing for a time of drought
is the right thing to do.
For more info on this and more simple steps, again here is the link to 3 Steps.org
For more survival and political awareness,
visit this Prepper blog and get in the prepper blog ring.
Finally, if you are reading this and have a great idea that has made something easier for your storage preparedness, PLEASE put a link in your comments.
~Have a blessed day~
3 comments:
I like that system. I want to start by eating enough ice cream to get some empty buckets!
But seriously.... It's a good system.
I like to store water too. I keep 2 liter bottles whenever we have a party, rinse them out and add water and 1-2 drops of bleach. I'm supposed to empty and refill every year but I'm behind on that. But 2 liter bottles are easy to carry if you need to take your 72 hour kit and go somewhere too.
I like this idea. I worry about this alot, given not only politcis etc, but the fact that we live in an area where it's wassy to get snowed in... I'm going to start thinking about this. I don't quite understand the way to change out supplies.
Ok, let me explain a little better. First, just focus on making the buckets, maybe one a week or so. Try to do include enough for 3-4 meals. After you have a good supply (for some that may be 10 buckets, for others it can be closer to 20) then, once a week you will Make a meal from a bucket, you choose. Then, add the items you used to your grocery list, and when you buy them, put them in the bucket (which will be short one meal because you just ate it that week).
If the meal calls for oil, water, eggs o other pantry items, just try to stay stocked one extra of those things, so if you are snowed in, or stores are closed, you are fine for a few weeks on your own.
Hope that helps!
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